In part 2 (over a year ago!), I summarized my blog up to the middle of 2011. Let’s continue.
Singapore:
The danger of relying on super-dominant forces such as the PAP. Simple idea here: It’s never good to depend on any one thing too much, because entities inevitably fail and collapse. Diversity is the only survival strategy, according to Chan Chun Sing.
Open letter to MM Lee: Stop talking about track records, please. I was being overly antagonistic with this one, but the central idea was that track records are meaningless when the game changes.
Why care about GE2011, even if you can’t vote. Because a nation with an engaged citizenry is superior to one with an apathetic populace. We need to be proactive and involved for our nation to continue to prosper.
Ministerial Pay: The neglected truth about incentives. Even the private sector is overpaid. Intrinsic motivation is what matters, and intrinsic motivation (studies have shown) are eroded by extrinsic incentives.
What some old folks at a polyclinic can teach us about making Singapore a better place. A few individuals who are open and charming to others can warm up a cold crowd. We need more people like that. (Assumption: That smiles, laughter and conversation are better than the alternative.)
The Wizards At Straits Times strike again! [deleted] Both of the links I linked to as examples in the post are now dead.
Do Youths Care? I went to a public forum attended by Indranee Rajah and Cherian George. It was an interesting, largely positive experience, but I think we can do more, and better.
Why Singaporeans are outraged by TPL and not Chan Chun Sing. It was a violation of the tacit “prison bitch” agreement, where we trade “integrity” for “security”. It’s okay to cheat us as long as you protect us.
SG youth want to leave! But not because of foreign talent. Um, hooray? I cringe when reading my old stuff- a lot of posturing and overdramatization. If I had to rewrite this today, I’d say… we need to be a lot more precise about our understanding how Singaporean youth feel, and why they feel the way they do.
What SG’s govt can learn from U2, Starbucks & Man Utd. People want to feel involved, so you have to involve them. I suppose the “SG Conversations” was a step in the right direction, though we need to step that stuff up a notch.
Is Singapore a gaze-averse nation? Why do we make so little eye contact? We’d all be happier if we smiled at each other a little bit more. Friendliness is infections.
GE2011: Response to Xiaxue Where I repeat my “bad to be overdependent on the PAP” idea, but direct it at a blogpost Xiaxue wrote.
Suppose the opposition doesn’t win a single seat. It’s still a watershed election, and things are still getting better.
Overseas voting needs to be less daunting. I didn’t write this, but it’s important- especially for the next elections.
Arrogance. I deleted the post because I lost the original picture, but the point was that arrogance has no place in our politics. Yeah, I’m arrogant myself, but I’m not spending tax dollars.
Elections are over, now what? “Let’s all stick together, keep communicating, look out for each other and help to build this country into something we can all be proud of- not just politically, but in every possible sense. Keep your heads held high and your heart beating strong.”
Does racial harmony justify xenophobia in Singapore? Of course not. I wish we were kinder to one another. I wonder how we could make that a reality.
The Wisdom of George Yeo. George has not left politics; he has transcended it.
DPM Teo states the obvious I continue to repeat the “PAP does not have a monopoly on good ideas” perspective, with an addition “the space between government and citizen is getting smaller” idea.
Chan Chun Sing indirectly criticises PAP superdominance. He says diversity is the only survival strategy. You can’t cherrypick this- why would it apply in some systems, but not in others?
Xiaxue’s remarkable wisdom I honestly think she’s a great decision-maker. Evidence? She lives a lifestyle that she deliberately chose and crafted for herself.
Escape from Ah Tiong Bahru, aka Singapore In which I try respond to Alfian’s (I love him) frustration with foreigners in Singapore. I understand where he’s coming from. I hope we can all be kinder to each other.
How should our MPs handle social media? Even within the PAP, some MPs use it well and some don’t.
SlutWalk Singapore too much pettiness and not enough discussion of the underlying issues.
banglas, ah tiongs and a whole lotta love. Thoughts on how kind working-class folks can be.
further thoughts about Singapore’s education system Not being able to socialize effectively is a far greater handicap in this world than being mathematically challenged. The value of a teacher lies in everything you can’t prescribe in a lesson plan. Don’t avoid real-world opportunities for learning- embrace them.
conversations with alfian saat. Many people share his status updates but I don’t think many of them know his story.
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How I ran a half-marathon without training. Lots of people Google this! It was a bad idea, I left feeling like I had been in a car accident. It’s nice knowing on hindsight that I completed it, but it didn’t really make me a fitter person. My exercise routines suffered in the weeks that followed. Do your training, folks.
What Mass Effect 2 can teach you about earning the loyalty of your peers. The Hero isn’t indifferent to others. Evaluate the relationships in your life, and strive to be useful/of assistance to the people that matter.
Who or what is a hero List of quotes about heroism. I really wanted to be someone great.
Pursue excellence. “I don’t want to be mediocre”.
19 things that I have learnt. Just some truisms from 48 Laws of Power.
visa we need to talk. Advice from my past self: Sleep well, be clear about financial risk-taking, establish a writing routine.
what have I learnt? don’t argue, ask questions.
3 Things I’m Passionate About Conversations, fantasizing (daydreaming), fulfillment (being at peace).
Return of the rambling nonsense. I don’t want to be a recursive-ponzi-life-coach-blogger. “Depth over reach, intensity over extensiveness.”
What are my interests? Fitness, finances, relationships, communication, writing, building communities, Singapore, personal development, self-directed learning.
Describe yourself. My johari/nohari windows.
5 Talents: good with words, spotting inefficiencies/ineffectiveness, making analogies, givving people broader perspectives, questioning status quo
Value Creation. I want to create value, deliberately, prospectively (rather than reactively).
Knowing but not knowing. Exploring the limitations of knowledge and the problem of false knowledge. Inconclusive, needs revisiting.
random ramblings. I want to live life effectively, make good decisions. Start with fundamentals. Hydration. Sleep. Self-awareness, self-mastery, managing my mental state
Death. It’s not possible to truly live until we have prepared for death.
The depth of complexity. “the beauty of the complexity lies in its disequilibrium, we appreciate it because we realise intuitively how easily everything might fall apart.”
The art of disagreement ask questions / don’t take things personally / find something you can both agree on / acknowledge mistakes / play nice / walk away
Communication, negotiation and the friendship of Charles and Erik “We just need to get better at communicating and negotiating- first with ourselves, to transcend arrogance and hubris, and then with one another, to find mutually beneficial outcomes. Everything else is commentary.”
Self-directed learning. Provisional attempts at book reviews. Revisit.
Sense of urgency: “I feel that the most important thing to do now is to build a sustainable framework that will allow and compel me to do consistently get large quantities of writing done. have no need to come up with any “new” ideas- everything I need is already either in my head, or within immediate reach.”
Confronting the structural failings of conventional organizations On hindsight, I am not at all qualified to comment on conventional organizations. I’ve never built one. I can offer suggestions, but I’m unaware why things are the way they are. Will have to revisit this one.
Applying fitness wisdom to writing. Done is better than perfect.
Jason and Odysseus. Two ways to deal with seductive sirens- either overwhelm it with something more powerful, or block it out entirely.
Left 4 Dead: Enlightened self interest in a zombie apocalypse. Taking care of others can totally be in your self interest, especially when you’re fighting off zombies together.
Enlightened hedonism. We talk too little about pleasure. Need to revisit this.
The Hero Hypothesis. The world would be a better place with more heroes- people who strive to better themselves and others, beyond what is expected of them
. The Armchair Critic story we kinda sucked, but we did what we could and it was a hell of a ride.
How I started tracking my life Pt 1 (part 2 is linked). Somehow this all fell apart. I think it’s because I stopped doing it with pen + paper. Digital stuff is one thing, but it’s easy to ignore. I should return to pen and paper. (I have.)
The problem with practical logic: sound reasoning from faulty premises is problematic.
Is the human race fucked beyond measure? Nah.
Transactive memory and being a part of something greater
on regrets, certainty, fragility and forks in the road
The simple yet overlooked truth about self interest If you want to have a good time in BMT, make your sargeants and officers happy. If you want to have a good time work, make your colleagues and boss happy. Etc.
Love and compassion is the answer. We all want to be loved, respected, validated, appreciated. A lot of what we do,including the nasty stuff, is our odd way of asking for it. If we learn to acknowledge that about ourselves, and see that in others, I believe we’d be a lot more forgiving of one another. We lose ourselves searching for what we would find within ourselves all along.
acqusition, reflection, then creation– this seems to be the natural progression of dealing with information.
What I learnt from basic military training You learn how to function as a part of something greater than yourself. / It’s the little interactions that add up. / Regimentation frees up your mind to focus on other things. / We are all interconnected. / You may not get to choose what to do, but you do get to choose what you’re going to make of it.
transcending the limitations of identity– we are defined by our ideas of who we are / self-esteem cannot be conditional / non-static identities / visualization as means to influence one’s state
the to-write list– revisit.
is it okay for guys to cry– not sure why I ever bothered writing about this. Obviously yes.
systems, ideas, projects – I used to think in overly abstract terms; which I think were okay since I was in NS at the time and didn’t have any real stakes to worry about
utilizing decisive bursts the realization when cutting threads with penknives that a few decisive bursts are far more powerful than lots of tiresome sawing… humans are meant to work in bursts, I think. sprints. HIIT.
the disruption and resuming of the 90 week project an analysis of how I utterly, irrecoverably stumbled after a change in environment + losing the notebook that I kept everything in. Need to be able to bounce back quickly, more easily.
my love for self-correcting mechanisms the beauty of living systems… just raving at this point
. daily rambling: the forgotten art of the ramble. great things happen gradually.
how important are consistency and sustainability? do it, keep doing it.
RIP steve jobs. Dare to make a difference.
thoughts on illness, immune systems and weekend warriors. i fall sick a lot due to bad fundamentals and unnecessary shocks (not sleeping well, overexerting myself)
misery and effective decision making regroup, focus, decide. learn to love.
how good are you at making maps? additional information can reduce your chance of being understood.
Thoughts about #occupywallstreet “Again, just to emphasize- I have ZERO sympathy for Wall Street and I think the protests are perhaps an inevitable emergent phenomenon of system failure. They were going to happen. But what are you going to do?”
Dealing with a fear of failure. Samuel Beckett, JK Rowling
Dealing with depression, in yourself or in others “There’s no therapy better than great relationships with good people, good music and art. We got to show that we care and have faith that it’ll get through to them eventually.”
How to win at relationships. Love is not a zero-sum game. Best decision ever. To live purposefully.
Pragmatism or idealism? Help people or protest for a cause? “I think everyone ought to strive for a balance of both idealism and pragmatism- you have to nourish both the stomach and the soul. I’d be constantly a little anxious and wary if I left out one or the other.”
On productivity, evolution and conversations write drunk, edit sober. vary then select. bulk then cut.
Idiot tax: how much do you pay? Revisit.
Do you doubt yourself, and if so why do anything? Life is too short to live in permanent, unthinking doubt. You have to acknowledge that there are some things you probably won’t get answers to, and focus on making the difference that you can reasonably make.
Can the self be localized in the brain? “the brain needs constant feedback from the external world to make sense of itself.”
What do you do if you are a self-fulfilling prophet? Logic and hindsight are worth little when you’re on the edge of chaos. If you’re a self-fulfilling prophet (and everybody is, to some degree), prophecize big.
Are you fake? Depends on what you mean by real. Fake is a label we use to pretend that people aren’t complex, to demand consistency from others that we do not experience or exhibit ourselves.
Why do you love me? We feel more than we know, and we know more than we say, so any answer to such a question will necessarily be limited and inadequate.
You can never completely know yourself. The map > Territory. The self > Explanation.
Hacking delayed gratification: The Tomorrow-Self
On staying awake and giving a damn. Realizing that bad sleeping habits screwed me up. Also, I never really cared very much about lots of things- could I have changed that? Should I have tried? The past is the past, I can only focus on the present.
Serendipitious conversations You can’t force chemistry, but you can make yourself more receptive to it. You can take more shots. Focus on the people and projects that matter.
3 things we should teach our kids. Logic, Emotional Management, Operacy (financial management, self-control, etc).
Ranks and accomplishments. Gamification in the military and other organizations.
Myth of Self-Esteem, by Albert Ellis. Nobody is perfect, so nobody can win the game of conditional self-esteem. We all lose. We have to accept each other regardless.
What is your specialization? What makes you different?
What is it that differentiates people? Experiences? Circumstances? Perspectives?
Are you too smart for your own good? Immersion is the only real way anybody learns anything. Better fundamentals.
What is politics? Doing and saying what needs to be done to achieve desired end-state.
Never confess your love to anyone. Overdramatic. Flirt subtly instead, and escalate carefully- giving yourself and the other person the opportunity to gracefully disengage.
The man who will not drive On giving up.
Marketplace.sg it should be easy to buy the work of Singaporean artists, writers, etc.
Project Statement. The preliminary idea that would become Statement.sg
Action and reflection. Phase cycling, two primary modes of existence, yin-yang.
This is the end of 2011, I’ll stop here for part 3.
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